College basketball rankings: Duke bringing in the new year as the new No. 1
The Blue Devils' resume shows why they deserve to be ranked at the top
By
Gary Parrish
•
1 min read
Villanova lost Saturday. So did Arizona State and Texas A&M. So the top of the CBS Sports Top 25 (and one) looks different on this Sunday morning. And the new No. 1 is ... Duke.
Let me explain.
The Blue Devils beat Florida State 100-93 on Saturday to improve to 13-1 and record their fourth top-40 KenPom win of the season. And do you know how many other schools have four top-40 KenPom wins right now? Answer: Zero. So you can reasonably argue that Duke currently has better wins than anybody -- most notably a neutral-court victory over the Michigan State team that's likely to move to No. 1 in the AP poll on Monday. But here's my question: Why?
Why should Michigan State be No. 1?
The Spartans are 13-1 and great, undeniably; it's why I have them third in the Top 25 (and one). But they only have two top-40 KenPom wins compared to Duke's four -- not to mention Arizona State's three. And Michigan State's one loss is an 88-81 neutral-court loss to a Duke team that spent the final 30 minutes of that game without its best player (Marvin Bagley). In other words, Duke has twice as many top-40 wins as Michigan State and a win over Michigan State. So Duke over Michigan State in the Top 25 (and one) makes sense to me. And, yes, I know Duke's loss at Boston College is worse than Michigan State's loss to Duke. But the truth is that Boston College, over the past few weeks, has proven to be better than anybody realized back when the Eagles beat Duke earlier this month. They're now a top-75 KenPom team -- one that nearly upset Virginia at Virginia on Saturday. And Michigan State still hasn't even played, much less beaten, a top-75 KenPom team on the road, for whatever that's worth.
Moving on ...
No, I'm not going to punish Arizona State for losing a close game at Arizona. And I'm not going to punish TCU for losing by one to Oklahoma. And I'm not going to punish Tennessee for losing in overtime at Arkansas. And I'm not going to punish Florida State for losing a close game at Duke. That's why the Sun Devils are still No. 2, the Horned Frogs are still No. 8, the Vols are still No. 13 and the Seminoles remain No. 19.
The complete Top 25 (and one) is below.
Biggest Movers
6
Duke
6
Texas A&M
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | The Blue Devils' resume features four top-40 KenPom wins -- among them victories over Michigan State and Florida State. The lone loss is a single-digit loss at Boston College. | 6 | 11-1 |
| 2 |  | The Sun Devils have three top-40 KenPom wins -- among them victories over Xavier and Kansas. The lone loss is a single-digit loss at Arizona. | -- | 9-4 |
| 3 |  | The Spartans have won 12 straight games since losing to Duke in Chicago. Their resume features three top-100 KenPom wins. | -- | 11-1 |
| 4 |  | The Wildcats took their first loss Saturday at Butler. They own wins over Tennessee and Gonzaga. | 3 | 10-2 |
| 5 |  | The Mountaineers have won 12 straight games since losing to Texas A&M in the season opener. Their resume features wins over Virginia, Oklahoma State and Missouri. | -- | 9-4 |
| 6 |  | The Cavaliers have won four straight games since losing at West Virginia. Next up is Wednesday's game at Virginia Tech. | -- | 11-1 |
| 7 |  | The Sooners have won nine straight games since losing to Arkansas in Portland. They've won road games at Wichita State and TCU. | 3 | 9-3 |
| 8 |  | The Horned Frogs' lone loss is a single-point loss to Oklahoma. Their resume features two top-30 KenPom wins -- specifically victories over SMU and Nevada. | -- | 9-3 |
| 9 |  | The Musketeers have won nine straight games since losing to Arizona State. The streak includes victories over Cincinnati and Baylor. | -- | 9-4 |
| 10 |  | The Aggies' two losses are a loss to Arizona in Arizona and a loss to Alabama in Alabama. Their resume features four top-50 KenPom wins. | 6 | 9-3 |
| 11 |  | The Shockers' resume features wins over Baylor, Oklahoma State and Marquette. Their two losses are single-digit losses to Oklahoma and Notre Dame. | -- | 8-5 |
| 12 |  | The Tar Heels have won two straight games since losing at home to Wofford. They've beaten Tennessee, Arkansas and Michigan. | -- | 12-1 |
| 13 |  | The Vols' three losses are all single-digit losses to teams also in the Top 25 (and one). Their best win is an OT win over Purdue. | -- | 9-3 |
| 14 |  | The Boilermakers have won nine straight games since losing to Tennessee and Western Kentucky. Their resume features three top-40 KenPom wins. | -- | 11-1 |
| 15 |  | The Jayhawks made 17 3-pointers in Friday's win at Texas. They'll take a four-game winning streak into Tuesday's game with Texas Tech. | -- | 10-3 |
| 16 |  | The Wildcats have won eight straight games since losing three straight in the Battle 4 Atlantis. The streak includes victories over Arizona State and Texas A&M. | -- | 12-0 |
| 17 |  | The Wildcats' resume features wins over Virginia Tech and Louisville. They're 2-2 against top-50 KenPom teams with losses to Kansas and UCLA. | -- | 9-4 |
| 18 |  | The Hurricanes' lone loss is a single-digit loss to New Mexico State. They own wins over Minnesota and Middle Tennessee. | -- | 11-2 |
| 19 |  | The Seminoles' resume features a win over Florida and zero sub-50 KenPom losses. Their next two games are against North Carolina and Miami. | -- | 7-6 |
| 20 |  | The Zags have won two straight games since losing at San Diego State. Their resume features wins over Creighton, Texas and Ohio State. | -- | 12-1 |
| 21 |  | The Pirates own wins over Texas Tech, Creighton and Louisville. Their lone sub-100 KenPom loss is a single-digit loss at Rutgers. | -- | 11-2 |
| 22 |  | The Red Raiders have won six straight games since losing to Seton Hall in New York. Their resume features four top-100 KenPom wins -- including victories over Baylor and Nevada. | -- | 9-3 |
| 23 |  | The Bearcats closed the non-league portion of their schedule with four straight wins. Next up is UC's AAC opener against Memphis on New Year's Eve. | -- | 7-5 |
| 24 |  | The Razorbacks have won six straight games since getting blown out at Houston. They are the only team to beat Oklahoma | -- | 9-3 |
| 25 |  | The Bears lost by 24 points Friday at Texas Tech. Their best win to date is a November victory over Creighton. | -- | 9-2 |
| 26 |  | The Bluejays' three losses are all to teams also ranked in the Top 25 (and one). Their best wins are over UCLA and at Northwestern. | -- | 8-5 |
